Читать книгу Surviving The Storm - Heather Woodhaven - Страница 13

FOUR

David moved only when the tide surged, in case there was a gunman waiting outside, listening. He doubted there’d be anyone, though, judging by the depth of the water. High tide was coming fast.

Aria’s hand remained on his wrist, pulling. Her slow movements complemented each gush of water. She was graceful, just as she had been the last time they thought they were doomed. Only then, they had used their phones to find the other exit, and didn’t have two men out to kill them.

She grunted and jerked his wrist up a foot. Ah, she’d found the ledge. He climbed up after her, relieved to be out of the water. She spun around, trembling. David pulled her in close and squeezed his arms around her. “You’re freezing.”

He felt her nod against his chest, but the shaking lessened only a bit. His heart was certainly shaking more, though.

“They can’t see us now unless they come all the way in,” she whispered. He didn’t trust himself to answer. His shoulder stung. He was angry at the situation and confused by this woman that still made his heart ache.

She tugged on his wrist again, then let go. He missed her touch the moment she left. A small glow erupted from her hand. Her phone was on, but she was covering most of the screen with her other hand. It was enough to see the second crevice deep within the cave. The one they would need to escape. Shuffling, they made their way through. So far, so good.

“Duck,” she ordered.

He dropped to his knees, the hard, slimy rock pressing into his palms. Yes, he remembered this place well, but mostly the kisses, not the emergency exit route. His shoulder chose that moment to smart again. The frustration returned and he almost welcomed it—maybe it’d help keep him focused. His fingers accidentally brushed against her calf. Her skin felt like ice.

“Why’d you stop moving?” he asked.

“I wanted to make sure you were okay.” Her voice was husky, filled with emotion. She had to be thinking about George again. Aria was a smart woman, brilliant—a visionary even—but she led with her heart more often than logic, and she kept it all to herself until she burst. He loved the way her mind worked during the times she did open up, but he could never anticipate when an emotional tidal wave was coming and would take charge.

He suspected it was the exact reason she’d said she needed space after she got his card. He still hated himself for telling her his feelings through a love letter. He’d intended for it to be romantic, though, and a keepsake she would cherish and show their children someday. He scoffed. A bad decision only trumped by their phone conversation shortly after she said she’d received it.

He had expected her to gush with returned feelings of love and instead she’d said she needed space. The word still made him cringe, but hanging up on her had effectively closed any chance they had at a future. He’d tried to apologize in person, driving the six hours from his job in Northern California to Portland, only to find her gone from her apartment. He didn’t give up, though, until he found her parents’ house also empty, a for-sale sign posted in their yard.

And now he was letting his own feelings cloud his thoughts.

“Keep moving,” he pressed. “I’ll tell you if I’m not fine.”

“That sharp curve and rise is coming.”

He took a deep breath. Last time they’d emerged with long lacerations etched on their foreheads. They’d been prescribed healthy doses of penicillin. Their parents, there for a Christian construction workers conference, had lectured them both, despite the fact that David was a twenty-two-year-old man at the time. When he had pointed that tidbit out, his mother snapped, “Once a parent, always a parent.”

David supposed the darkness wasn’t helping keep the memories at bay. He trailed her and tried to keep his head down low in preparation for the curve. A flicker of light crossed the surface of the rock directly underneath his hand. They were almost out. “If those guys don’t kill us, when our parents find out we did this again, they’re going to want to try.”

She remained silent—either she hadn’t heard him or she didn’t think his attempt at humor was funny. He pressed forward until he saw the sky.

Aria was already above him, facing him on her hands and knees, looking down into the tunnel. She slapped what resembled a tree root that dangled in front of him. His shoulder ached as he pulled himself up and collapsed onto the long grasses. Drizzle hit his face. The snow had turned to a sprinkle of cold rain. They were perched on a small overhang covered in tufts of beach grass, the rest of the cliffs behind them.

David needed a moment to catch his breath.

“I never thought we’d do that again,” Aria murmured.

“I don’t think we should make it a tradition.”

She cracked a half smile and threw a thumb over her shoulder. “That path is still there, around the corner. I think it’ll wind us behind some of the buildings and, if I remember right, get us a lot closer to the cottages.” She lifted her face and closed her eyes as if welcoming the drizzle. Her eyes flashed open, and she groaned. “But we’ll have to find a place to cross the creek.”

“I’m really getting sick of water.” He jumped up. His shoulder throbbed but seemed to have stopped bleeding. The path was easy to find and, to their advantage, hugged the cliff’s edge. The tall beach grass and boulders outlining the dirt would act as good hiding spots should the men still be scouting for them. Over their heads was the state park. It was an outcropping of forest that sat almost like a floating peninsula above the coast.

They took turns stepping over a chain that hadn’t been there years before. It held a metal sign that read Restricted. Aria squeezed her hands together, the distress evident on her face. The state park likely deemed the trail unsafe, but it was safer than facing the gunmen. It’d have to do. He plowed forward, determined to get to the cottages in record time.

“David!” Her body slammed into his back.

* * *

Aria knew David’s physique was different since the last time she’d seen him but now her sore cheek attested to the rock-solid change. She patted his back. “Sorry. I’m fine. Just slipped.”

“I hope no one heard you,” he grunted before continuing.

She pursed her lips. Apparently, he’d turned into quite the charmer in the past couple of years. The nice boy she’d held hands with was clearly long gone. She couldn’t help but wonder what had happened to change him so much. What had been going on in his life after he broke up with her?

Aria took a tentative step on the next black rock, before lurching down and stumbling once again into his back. He huffed. “Would you like to save some time and use my back as a punching bag?”

“It was an accident,” she objected. “Are you angry with me?” She put her hands on her hips. In her mind, he had no right. She was trying to be nice without rehashing the past, but it wasn’t working. The man had a chip on his shoulder, and she wasn’t referring to the rock that had hit him. And with George gone and two men trying to kill them—

David stilled for a short moment but didn’t turn around. “No, I’m not angry with you,” he muttered. “I’m angry at the situation. Please bear with me, Aria. I’m having a hard time with all of this. I don’t mean to take it out on you.”

Her eyes blurred again. She needed to think about something else before she started crying, for she feared that once she started she wouldn’t be able to stop. Never had she ever felt so alone, and that was saying something.

She stared at the back of David’s head. His hair used to be as curly as her own locks. Now, it looked trimmed—wavy, but no curls. The lower half of his face was covered with the same brassy dark blond hair. The beard made him look older, as well as the extra bulk his shoulders sported.

“Did...did you grow the beard for the job?”

He spun and raised an eyebrow.

“To look older?”

He shrugged and moved forward.

“Please,” she said. “We don’t have to be friends, but I need...I need to talk to keep my mind...”

“I get it,” he said, his voice softer. “Yes. The beard helped. When you’re one of the youngest on the crew, you need to earn their respect to lead them.”

“So it’s rare to be young and be foreman?”

He nodded. “My construction management degree came in handy.”

She smiled. “You went back to school? I thought you had an automatic job with your dad.”

“Mom encouraged me to get some extra experience outside of Dad’s crew.”

She’d always liked David’s mom. It seemed like smart advice. “Living the dream, then?”

He grunted a noncommittal response. “What about you?” He leaned up against the side of the rock wall for a moment and surveyed the layout of the land. “What’s up with the cleaning?”

Her spine tingled. She hadn’t expected the conversation to turn personal, and she was a little bit embarrassed to share with him her career decision. She had a feeling he wouldn’t agree. And unlike George, who’d also questioned her choice, David wouldn’t quietly respect her new direction. She’d no doubt have to hear his thoughts on the matter and she wasn’t sure she could endure that just yet.

David continued down the path. She lurched again onto yet another rock and decided the best route was to keep it short and simple. “I took a break from school for a while. Now I’m back. Cleaning pays the bills.”

He narrowed his eyes and studied her for a moment, as if expecting she’d say more, but she didn’t reward him.

“So why didn’t George tell me you were here when he hired me?” he asked. “You’d think he could’ve mentioned that little tidbit, unless someone had asked him to keep it quiet.”

“I told you, he kept me in the dark too.” David had a point, though. When she had reconnected with George over a year ago, he’d asked after David. And she’d told him, in detail, about how their relationship ended. George had known it would be awkward for both of them and yet he kept it to himself. She huffed.

David’s gaze darted behind her and down the hill. “What? Did you see something?”

“No. Sorry. I just realized George was trying to play matchmaker.” She spotted a white tail bouncing up the boulders. This area of the coast had wild bunnies. They were a treat for visitors ever since she could remember. A rustle in the grasses revealed more bunnies, bounding up their way.

“Wonder why they’re all coming this way,” David mused. He pointed to a bend in the creek. “Think we can make it over on those boulders?”

If her shoes weren’t sopping wet, it’d be a piece of cake. She steeled her nerve. “I can manage.”

David lengthened his stride. “Barbara was the matchmaker, wasn’t she? Didn’t she set up your mom and dad?”

Aria cringed. He was hitting all the painful memories today. “Yes. Did you know Barbara passed away?”

He jutted his chin out. “Yeah.”

“Did you know George remarried last year?”

“Yes, but I haven’t met her yet. What’s she like?”

Trophy wife came to mind, as well as gold digger. The woman was probably twenty...maybe thirty years younger than George. “Uh. George loves—loved her. I know that much.”

“That’s all you can tell me?”

“I was raised if you don’t have something nice to say...”

David turned and raised an eyebrow. “Point taken.” He sighed. “We should warn her in case those men come after her. Do you have her number?”

Her face burned. She should’ve thought of that first. George would’ve wanted her to make sure Valentina was safe. “No,” she admitted.

David reached out for her hand and together they crossed the creek one boulder at a time. The first boulder was easier than she thought aside from a little slipping, which he helped remedy. He let go of her hand and crossed to the second boulder.

“It’s farther than I thought. Can you reach?”

Aria didn’t answer but focused on her destination and stepped out. Unfortunately, he was right to be concerned. The front of her toe reached the rock, but she was uncomfortably straddled...and stuck. David grabbed her waist and pulled, and she found herself in his arms. “Thank you,” she murmured. The remaining boulder she crossed without incident, but she was thankful when her squishy shoes touched dry land.

“How long since you called the police?”

She consulted her phone. “Assuming the pileup is still an issue, I’m guessing Summerville police are still...ten or fifteen minutes out?”

He blew out a long breath. “That long? Let’s get to your car before they spot us.”

“Except I don’t have my car keys with me. They’re in my room.” There were fifteen other buildings on campus still waiting for their turn to be remodeled. Thankfully, George had let her stay for free in one of the units.

He put his hands on his hips. “Your room?”

“I’m staying in one of the cottage units,” she continued. “The men probably don’t even know I stay on campus. We could grab the keys or just hide inside until the authorities show up.”

“Assuming we can get there without being seen.” He placed a hand on her back and shoved her down into the long grasses. “Get down!”